Jason Chaffetz

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2615) to establish the Virgin Islands of the United States Centennial Commission, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. How can you reject that? She said it as eloquently and as passionately from her heart as you possibly could. I am pleased that we could move this forward. In short, this bill creates a bipartisan congressional commission to plan and carry out commemorative activities for the 100th anniversary of the Virgin Islands becoming an unincorporated territory of the United States. The transfer of the Virgin Islands from Denmark to the United States in 1917 was a significant historic and cultural event. Under the bill, the bipartisan commission will develop, plan, and execute formal commemorative activities to honor the rich heritage of the Virgin Islands. The commission's goal is to highlight the cultural, economic, and historical importance of the Virgin Islands. By celebrating this anniversary, the commission also has the opportunity to educate the citizens about the history of the United States Virgin Islands. The commission may solicit and accept gifts and donations to fund its activities, but there is a prohibition, as the legislation bars any use of Federal funds. Again, I thank our colleague, Stacey Plaskett, the Delegate from the Virgin Islands, for her passion and caring. It is one of the most beautiful places on the face of the planet--second, of course, to Utah's Third Congressional District. But, nevertheless, I think that is why they accepted this. I hope everybody gets a chance to visit there. My daughter--on a personal note--was able to work there this past summer for 3 months. She thoroughly enjoyed the people, the culture, and the sheer beauty that is the Virgin Islands. I look forward to supporting this piece of legislation. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4359) to amend title 5, United States Code, to provide that Federal employees may not be placed on administrative leave for more than 14 days during any year for misconduct or poor performance, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 4359. We have worked in a good, bipartisan way. It is a good bill for the country and is good for the employees of the Federal Government. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4360) to amend title 5, United States Code, to provide that a Federal employee who leaves Government service while under personnel investigation shall have a notation of any adverse findings under such investigation placed in such employee's official personnel file, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. The vast majority of Federal workers are patriotic, they are honest, they are decent, they work hard, they show up early, they do what they are supposed to do, and they are proud to serve their country and provide their role in when they do. For that, we are very grateful. But like any large group of people, there are some bad apples. If you go through the barrel, you are going to find a few bad apples. We have a responsibility to make sure that we weed those out. These individuals must be treated fairly, but they must be held accountable. H.R. 4360 is a bill that accomplishes this balance and that strengthens the integrity of our civil service. Under the current system, a loophole allows Federal employees who are guilty of serious, but not necessarily criminal, infractions to leave Federal service before an investigation is completed and join a new agency without that new agency ever becoming aware of those previous issues. Unfortunately, in our work on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, we have had some examples of this. H.R. 4360 corrects this problem by requiring a notation to be made in the employee's official personnel file if an investigation leads to an adverse finding against that person even if the employee has already resigned. For example, under the current system, Federal employees who commit some form of misconduct or poor performance could resign from their positions and escape accountability. This is exactly what occurred at the United States Patent and Trademark Office. As part of an investigation, the Department of Commerce, Office of the Inspector General requested that a patent examiner attend a voluntary interview with the Office of the Inspector General. However, 2 hours before the interview with the OIG, the patent examiner resigned. In an instant message with a coworker, the examiner explained that the union recommended that he resign in order to have a clean slate, with no record of conduct or performance issues, if he applied to work for another agency. We cannot continue to have a system that creates loopholes for an individual to elude accountability by simply having to submit a piece of paper on a napkin--or something as simple as that--and writing, ``I hereby resign,'' and then keeping his record clean so he can get another job. Mr. Speaker, another example is of a similar event that unfolded with an Interior Department employee who was under investigation for lying about his education credentials. After being interviewed by the Interior Department's Office of Inspector General, this individual resigned from the Interior and later joined the Census Bureau; but when he went over to the Census Bureau, the Census Bureau was unaware of the history until well after it had hired this person. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 4360 remedies the scenarios I just discussed, thereby helping to protect agencies from making employment hires when having incomplete pictures of the individuals' backgrounds. This has happened on several occasions. It is almost disappointing that one has to go forward and legislate this, but given that it is happening, it is the responsible thing to do, and we have come together in a good, bipartisan way to make this happen. Specifically under this legislation, separated employees will have notations made in their official personnel files if they resign while under investigation and if those investigations lead to adverse findings. Additionally, if the individuals apply for other positions in the Federal Government, those notations will follow them as agencies will now be required to examine the personnel files of former Federal employees during the hiring process. Bad actors should not be able to resign from government service with clean slates and effectively dupe another agency that will then be hiring them. However, this bill also ensures that separated employees are provided the opportunity to contest the findings of an investigation. I think that is a fair and just way for them to be able to clean their records if they think that they have cases to be made. By working closely with my Democratic colleagues, we were able to build a process into this legislation that gives former employees a mechanism by which to fairly present their cases in the event an investigation leads to an adverse finding. Mr. Speaker, it is also important to note that H.R. 4360 does nothing to diminish the rights or protections that are afforded to whistleblowers. This is a bill to prevent individuals from maneuvering within the Federal Government in order to hide their misconduct. It is that simple. I urge its passage. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I urge the passage of H.R. 4360. I believe this is a good bill. We worked in a good, bipartisan way. It does make the system more fair and it makes it more accountable. It makes sure, for those who have adverse actions, that they can't simply skirt away from their responsibilities. It does hold people accountable. To that effect, it is a good bill, and I urge its passage. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate Mrs. Noem and her drive to address this very important issue. I believe that the overwhelming majority of the people who work at the IRS are good, hardworking, patriotic people who want to do the right thing. I have a serious problem with management and I have a serious problem with the head of the IRS, but on this issue, this is just unbelievable that we can't come to a conclusive and absolute 100 percent agreement. All we are asking for is that the bad apples, the people who will disturb what is going on in the workplace, who aren't going to act in the best interest of the United States of America, that they be excluded from participation. One of the things that is fascinating, Mr. Speaker, as we look at this, is in response to the independent review that was done of the IRS and their hiring practices. And the question here is: Should we go back and review the personnel employment file prior to rehiring somebody? This is what they said: ``Additionally, while it did find that a review of performance and conduct issues could be accomplished earlier in the process, the Department of Treasury, the Office of Personnel Management, and the Internal Revenue Service believed that it was not feasible to move the review of these issues earlier in the hiring process. This action would greatly increase the cost of hiring, likely increase cycle time beyond the Presidential mandate of 80 days, require additional resources, and not likely yield a reasonable return on investment.'' Come on. Come on. Are you kidding me? How long could it possibly take to actually go back and review somebody's performance reviews, look back at their employment history, and see if they have been acting in the best interest of the United States of America? Clearly, in the examples that are there, there are people that willfully don't even file their own tax returns, there are people that are doing some bad, stupid stuff. They don't think they have the time and resources to look at it in advance; we have to actually pass a piece of legislation requiring this? That seems entirely reasonable. It is not overly burdensome. Here you have an organization, the IRS, that can actually destroy somebody's life by a mere letter showing up in your mailbox, and they can't even take the time to look at somebody's employment history, somebody who has already worked at the IRS? That is how absurd this organization is, and that is why this piece of legislation is so easy to understand, it is so easy to vote for. It is not a partisan issue. This is just saying: Do you know what? For all the good people who work at the IRS, let's make sure that the new people who come on, or the rehires who come on, in this case, are actually addressed and we look at their information prior to hiring. It is that simple. That is why I am in favor of this bill.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Ron Jibson who, on April 12, 2016, will be honored as the 37th ``Giant in our City.'' This award honors those individuals with exceptional and distinguished service and extraordinary professional achievement. Ron is an incredibly deserving recipient. Ron's contributions to the Utah business community have been transformative, and his work to solve important issues has transformed our state. Ron currently serves as President and CEO of Questar Corporation, a natural gas and energy company. Not only is Ron an industry leader, he has contributed countless hours of service to our community. He currently serves as a trustee for Utah State University and serves on the boards of the Utah Symphony/Opera and the Women's Leadership Institute. Countless Utahns have, and continue to be, impacted by Ron's work. I am honored to recognize Ron Jibson as a true ``giant'' in Utah's community today. I thank him for his commitment to bettering Utah, and his influence in effecting change.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Officer Doug Barney. Officer Barney was killed on Sunday, January 17, 2016, in Holladay, Utah, while working overtime in order to fund his cancer treatments. While on duty, Officer Barney was shot fatally by a fugitive who was missing from drug rehabilitation. Unified Police Officer John Richey was also shot, and has since undergone surgery and is expected to improve. Officer Barney became a police officer because he wanted to help people and loved children. He had formerly served as a school resource officer and worked tirelessly as a member of the Unified and Taylorsville, Utah, Police Departments for 18 years. His cancer was in remission at the time of his death. He is survived by his wife and three children. Officer Barney gave the ultimate sacrifice while in the line of duty. His colleagues have remembered him for his humor and caring nature. He was an accomplished officer who had overcome the odds of cancer. I honor Officers Barney and Richey as heroes and am grateful for their service to the State of Utah. Today, I ask all Members of Congress to join me as we honor the life and legacy of Officer Doug Barney, so that his sacrifice and service will be remembered by our country.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 1115) to close out expired grants.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 598) to provide taxpayers with an annual report disclosing the cost and performance of Government programs and areas of duplication among them, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1069) to amend title 44, United States Code, to require information on contributors to Presidential library fundraising organizations, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan), the gentleman who has championed this issue as the prime sponsor.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I urge its passage. It is high time that this passed. It is bipartisan, it is bicameral, and it is done with some good leadership from Mr. Duncan. I urge its adoption. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa), the former chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee and one of the lead sponsors of this bill.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 653) to amend section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the Freedom of Information Act), to provide for greater public access to information, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1777) to amend the Act of August 25, 1958, commonly known as the ``Former Presidents Act of 1958'', with respect to the monetary allowance payable to a former President, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.